Problem: Simplify the following expression: $y = \dfrac{-54p - 81}{9}$ You can assume $p \neq 0$.
Solution: Find the greatest common factor of the numerator and denominator. The numerator can be factored: $-54p - 81 = - (2\cdot3\cdot3\cdot3 \cdot p) - (3\cdot3\cdot3\cdot3)$ The denominator can be factored: $9 = (3\cdot3)$ The greatest common factor of all the terms is $9$ Factoring out $9$ gives us: $y = \dfrac{(9)(-6p - 9)}{(9)(1)}$ Dividing both the numerator and denominator by $9$ gives: $y = \dfrac{-6p - 9}{1}$ or more simply, $y = -6p - 9$